Day 1 - Key themes emerge, #SecJam16 trends on Twitter

The 2016 Security Jam got off to a roaring start with Dutch Foreign Minister Koenders and 15 other leading personalities. Over 500 ideas were posted within the first 4 hours, three live-chats dove deep into individual topics, and #SecJam16 trended on Twitter.

Day 1 of the Jam highlighted some of the main challenges ahead, laying the groundwork for the development of concrete solutions in the coming days. Some key themes included:

Leaders: stop playing firefighter

It’s often difficult to catch policymakers’ attention before it’s too late, and the short-term too often gets in the way of longer-term solutions. How can strategic vision stay at the top of leaders’ priorities?

It’s complicated

Jammers argued for more cross-domain cooperation, for multi-actor and multi-level dialogue processes, be it in cybersecurity, early-warning and strategic foresight or peace-building. Can more cooperation make our societies more agile and resilient?

Show me the money

The financial constraints of burden-sharing took centre stage in discussions on foreign military engagements, and Jammers indicated that any Middle East security architecture would be dictated by the region’s economic future. Should a Middle East economic association come first?